Mira Bhayandar: In continuance with their crackdown against immoral and vulgar activities in the twin-city, officials from the Mira Bhayandar-Vasai Virar (MBVV) Police Commissionerate busted yet another high profile prostitution racket which was operating under the guise of a salon and spa in Kashimira on Friday evening.
While the operator, identified as Toros Magardichiyan (32), was arrested and booked under the under section 370 of the Indian Penal Code and the relevant sections of the Prevention of Immoral Trafficking Act (PITA), four women (aged between 20 to 30 years) who were allegedly forced into the flesh trade were rescued from the establishment at around 4:30 pm on Friday.
As usual, action eludes the owners of the premises who are also beneficiaries of the immoral trade.
In response to a tip-off from an informant that the spa was offering sexual services to its customers, a team led by Senior Police Inspector Sanjay Hazare deputed a decoy customer to establish contact and strike a deal with the spa operator. After confirming the authenticity of the information, the police team swooped down on Toros Spa and Salon located on the first floor of Golden City Complex in the Hatkesh area of Kashimira. The accused was caught while accepting money from the police decoy for facilitating the rendezvous.
Dozens of spas have mushroomed in almost every nook and cranny of the twin-city. Some have employed foreign nationals and are brazenly floating online advertisements on prominent web portals to lure potential clientele by offering massage services.
While the accused was remanded to custody, the rescued women were sent to a rehabilitation centre.
Apart from a few genuine ones, most of the spas and wellness centres have created small cubicles in their premises to offer sexually charged cross-massage services (by a person to a client of opposite gender). However, despite a crackdown on them, a section of shady spa owners seem to be unfazed by the police action.
